The present invention relates to joining two fiberoptic cables. More specifically, but without limitation thereto, the present invention relates to a fiberoptic cable junction suitable for submarine environments that may be assembled in the field.
Previous methods of making fiberoptic junctions have included epoxying strength members into cones and having the splice encased in a machined tube. Such designs require expensive machined parts and delicate assembly procedures. Other designs have used solder sleeves for mechanical termination. Solder sleeve designs, however, are not suitable for fiberglass strength members.
Another approach described in U.S. Pat. No. 5,315,682 uses a mechanical gripping device on steel wires to transmit mechanical tensile load. A polyethylene to polyethylene chemical bond is used to block water from electrical and optical components. This requires a plastic molding machine, which may not be practical in a field environment. In addition, this approach requires specially machined parts to house the fusion splice.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,224,189 uses mechanical connectors instead of a fusion splice to join the optical fibers and uses O-rings for blocking water. A disadvantage of this approach is that O-rings usually require expensive machined parts.
A need therefore exists for a fiberoptic cable junction that may be made in the field using off-the-shelf components.